The Effects of Financial Inclusion on Children's Schooling, and Parental Aspirations and Expectations

We analyse the effects of offering access to a savings account to a sample of poor women on the educational attainment of their children and on the educational aspirations and expectations they have for them. Using data from a field experiment in Nepal that randomized access to savings accounts among a largely unbanked population, we provide evidence that financial access increased the schooling level of daughters and the educational aspirations and expectations parents have for them. Wealth and female empowerment do not seem to be behind our findings.